Apple was the first mover in this space. The iPod was the first music player to use the 1.8" hard drives that changed music players from being either 128MB flash devices or items too large for one's pocket. Add to that the wheel and you just had a much better device. And others have still yet to match it - even if they're open.
Sure, Sony's backwards approach meant that companies like SanDisk were able to get ahead of them, but their devices just don't have the interface that Apple's iPod has. And Sony has been really old-fashioned in their approach to their devices recently. Where Apple has used new technology to create better interfaces, Sony just hasn't kept up.
The issue today is that no one (except possibly Palm with its soon to be released webOS) has been able to match Apple's interfaces, never mind exceed them. And with Apple's volume, it's hard for a competitor with a poor interface to undercut Apple on price. So you get items like the Dell DJ which costs the same, but isn't as well designed.
For Sony to regain its position in portable electronics, it really needs to figure out the interface that will make people's lives better than Apple's (or at least just as good). Palm might be doing that by equaling Apple's touchscreen design and going a little further with its "cards" metaphor, but that's a bit of hopeful thinking on my part (as much as I like Apple, I like competitive markets even better).
For a great example of Sony being ridiculously old fashioned, just look at the tape loading like mechanism of the PSP. It's ridiculous. And the UMD proprietory format (Sony when will you stop trying to create and control the next big format. They've failed so many times it's not funny any more).
Are you serious? ;)
The Bluray vs HD-DVD war was irrelevant to most people. It's a stopgap until we all go digital. They were trying to squeeze out one last physical media...
:) That's an interesting perspective, and I agree with your anti-Sony sentiment. But, I believe blueray has sold many PS3s and will be worth their trouble in the long run.
(I've only seen one PS3 game I've wanted to play that wasn't also on 360.)
Agreed. I'm just thrilled they're having these revelations now, but everyone was complaining about all their little proprietary hardware storage back when it was released. So instead of saying "we told ya so", how about "eh, screw em".
(un)fortunately there are less audiophiles than consumers perfectly happy with 128kb mp3's pumping out of substandard earphones. and as long as that is the case: apple > sony.
Or indeed consumers who are perfectly happy with the sound of 210 kb/s VBR mp3s on an iPod through £80 Grado headphones.
I'm not trying to take any side myself here, but it does sound like you're implying that it's the "audiophiles" versus the "mindless masses", when I think you'll find there is also a significant population of people who value good quality sound but who can't necessarily discern any difference in quality between the top brands of mp3 player. I've owned models from three of them, and I certainly can't.
Not to want to sound snobbish, but £80 headphones are kind of wasted on mp3s in any case - if you compare listening to an mp3 and the same track on CD (or in a lossless codec such as flac), you'd definitely notice the difference, and appreciate the headphones more.
This being said, I have an iAudio and, using the same headphones, the sound is noticeably better than my girlfriend's (more expensive) iPod.
Eh, I listen to live versions of things, mostly—all the quality that's going to be lost was lost before the track was even mastered, so it doesn't matter if it's compressed, really.
Have you ever put yourself through a double-blind test on this issue?
Since the previous comment didn't just talk about mp3s in general but specifically mentioned 210Kbps VBR I think you'll find it an eye opening experience.
Sure, Sony's backwards approach meant that companies like SanDisk were able to get ahead of them, but their devices just don't have the interface that Apple's iPod has. And Sony has been really old-fashioned in their approach to their devices recently. Where Apple has used new technology to create better interfaces, Sony just hasn't kept up.
The issue today is that no one (except possibly Palm with its soon to be released webOS) has been able to match Apple's interfaces, never mind exceed them. And with Apple's volume, it's hard for a competitor with a poor interface to undercut Apple on price. So you get items like the Dell DJ which costs the same, but isn't as well designed.
For Sony to regain its position in portable electronics, it really needs to figure out the interface that will make people's lives better than Apple's (or at least just as good). Palm might be doing that by equaling Apple's touchscreen design and going a little further with its "cards" metaphor, but that's a bit of hopeful thinking on my part (as much as I like Apple, I like competitive markets even better).